Facebook moves to make website comments a social activity

Facebook released an update Tuesday that extends the social network’s reach into the comments sections of third-party websites.

The update means public comments on content at participating websites, such as Discovery.com, will display Facebook members’ names, photos and other public information, depending on their privacy settings.

And the online discussions started on the outside website will by default simultaneously appear on the comment maker’s Facebook wall, although he or she can chose to not post it.

If Facebook’s commenting platform spreads, it’s probably good news for websites that want to control the trolls who post inappropriate comments under the cloak of anonymity, although it’s not good news for people who have legitimate comments yet have a good reason to keep their identities private.

“We weighed the pros and cons,” said Kelly Day, executive vice president and general manager of Discovery Digital Media. “We think there are more upsides to this than downsides.”

The update is part of the Palo Alto company’s overall plan to push its social networking influence into as much of the Web as possible. Facebook last week updated its “Like” button so that it can be used to instantly post Web content within the social network.

Discovery Communications was one of several companies that rolled out the new Facebook Comments plug in Tuesday morning. It was the first time the company – which operates sites like DiscoveryChannel, HowStuffWorks and TLC – has allowed comments of any kind.

Discovery has logged about 26 million “likes” from visitors who were sharing content through Facebook, so the comments plug in was “a good opportunity to connect the conversations,” Day said.

The algorithm moves comments made by a person’s Facebook friends up to display them highest, Facebook software engineer Ray C. He said in a blog post.

“Comments are ordered to show users the most relevant comments from friends, friends of friends, and the most liked or active discussion threads, while comments marked as spam are hidden from view,” He said.

Beluga Inc.

In an unrelated announcement, Facebook said it has purchased Beluga Inc., a small Palo Alto company that was developing a mobile group messaging platform.

Terms were undisclosed. But the deal was a talent acquisition for Facebook, which brings aboard the three ex-Google Inc. employees who started the firm – Ben Davenport, Lucy Zhang and Jonathan Perlow.

“We’re psyched to confirm that we’ve just acquired the talent and assets of Beluga, whose simple and elegant mobile apps blew us away as a solution to help groups of friends stay in touch on the move,” Facebook said in a statement.

Facebook spokesman Jonathan Thaw said Beluga, which used a whale logo, will continue to operate as usual. But he said Facebook will reveal details about its future plans for the technology “in the coming weeks.”